Stay Alert, Stay Safe: The Story of the Crane and the Crab
Somewhere in a jungle, beside a quiet pond, the water went …PLIP…PLOP… as fish swam lazily.
A tall crane stood at the edge.
TAP…TAP…TAP… went his long legs on the mud.
The fish swam around him. The crane was getting old.
He did not have the strength to catch fish easily anymore. His looked at the fish hungrily. His stomach growled RUMBLE… RUMBLE…
He was starving and thought to himself, “I must think of a clever plan. Otherwise, I will not be able to get any food.”
He sighed loudly, and pretended to cry.. SNIFF…SNIFF…SOB…SOB… shedding false tears.
A curious crab came crawling …SNAP…SNAP…across the sand.
“Why are you sad, Mr. Crane?” asked the crab.
The crane sniffed, SOB…SOB…
“Oh, dear friend!” he said sadly, letting out a long, “Last night I had a dream. God appeared and told me that there will be no rain for the next 12 years.”
The crab clicked his claws … SNAP…SNAP… and replied, “Don’t worry, Mr. Crane, it’s just a dream.”
Some curious fish had swum closer to listen.
The crane shook his head with a sad FLAP…FLAP… of his wings,
“I thought the same at first, but I was curious and worried, so I went to a wise sage. He studied the stars and planets and told the same thing – there really will be no rain here for the next 12 years.”
The fish gasped GLOOP!GULP! in the water.
Panicked, they asked the crane, “Help us Mr. Crane! Is there any way to protect ourselves from this disaster.”
The crane pretended to think for some time…HEHEHE….his trick had worked.
He replied, “Not far from here, there is another lake. It’s large and full of water, covered with huge lotus flowers. It will not dry up even if there are no rains for the next 24 years.”
The fish were relieved. “But how will we get there?” they were worried once again.
“Don’t worry,” said the crane. “If you hop onto my back, I can carry each of you one by one to a big, safe lake.”
The frightened fish agreed.
Thus, gaining their trust, the crane lifted the fish one by one onto his back and flew off with them.
FLAP…FLAP…FLAP…went his wings.
Once he was out of sight, he landed on a rock, dropped the fish from his back, and happily gobbled it…CHOMP…GULP…
After a while…he came back to the pond.
He told made-up stories and fake messages from the fish he had taken away.
He said they had reached the lake safely and were very happy.
The other fish believed everything he said.
Soon, they began asking him,“Please take us with you too!”
The crane smiled.
He placed another fish on his back…
…and happily flew away.
This continued for several days. Day after day,
FLAP…CHOMP…GULP…the crane ate many fish.
The crab was quietly watching the crane.
As the days passed, the weak crane became healthy and strong.
The crab began to feel suspicious.
At last, one day, the crab said, “Today, you’re going to carry me to the lake!”
The crane thought excitedly, “I’ve been eating fish every day… today I’ll eat a crab!” SLURP…
He placed the crab on his back and FLAP..FLAP…WHOOSH… flew towards his rock to eat.
As they got closer to the rock…the crab saw something from a distance.
It was a pile of fish bones.
The crab realized the trick!
Quickly he grabbed the crane’s neck with his claws …SNIP! SNAP!
The heron cried …SQUAAWK!
But the crab held tight …CRUNCH!!
The heron fell down …THUD!!
The crab crawled back to the pond and told everyone what had happened.
The fish were silent with shock. They realised their foolishness and felt sorry for the fish that were gone.
They thanked the crab for saving them.
The pond became calm and peaceful again.
With plenty of rain that year, the fish, crab, and other water bodies lived happily in their beloved pond.
The fish and the crab learnt an important lesson from this:
Trusting too easily can put you in danger. Thinking carefully and staying alert can help keep you safe.
Moral of the story:
Smartness and quick thinking can defeat even the cleverest trickster.
If you’re interested in a physical book, take a look at the engaging Panchatantra storybooks listed below.
